why paintings sucks or how the inquisitor and the commander first kiss
by Sargomes
Summary: On about why commissioned paintings suck or how Aline Trevelyan and Cullen first kissed * I had no beta and english is my second language, so sorry for any mistakes committed.
1. Chapter 1

On about why commissioned paintings suck or how Aline Trevallian and Cullen first kissed

Just about another ordinary day in Skyhold, The Inquisitor was there holding court sat in the throne with her stoic boring face on, and her battle commemorative outfit on . (How much she loved Viviane's seamstress for that outfit, not anyone could have made something that at the same time shows fashion taste, battlehardiness, sexiness even with all her body cover up and with a touch of cuteness added by the desert furnec tail collar . The woman is truly a finding ) Nothing out of the ordinary, in the middle of the court section, as usual the Commander took his place on the left of the throne, and stood there, in his tall serious pose holding the hilt of his sword, as he would usually do.

Appearances were everything in the Game, as Viviane usually said. In addition, to show the Inquisition strength nothing better than this scene, a strong stoic woman sat in a throne with an outfit made for warriors monarchs and her military arm near her, showing all of them that they were to be feared, showing the world that they were a power to be acknowledge. Of course, this was the show for the court, and mostly for the Orleasian. Even if they reach for the Empire support, Aline Trevalyan was a marcher , an as a marcher, she wasn't a delicate flower with ribbons and mask. She wanted the orlesians to acknowledge that Skyhold was a military base and the Inquisition an organization created to hold the world against things that mostly had to be killed, not dissuaded to stop doing bad things and enjoy the party. Either way she hated the show, she hated the game, even being skilled at it as she was , she hated it, and all of that from the outfit to Cullen's presence near her, was all planned to show them that the inquisition should be taken seriously. Some in the Inquisition didn't agree with this image that she was showing, but for once she agreed with Viviane, the show should be impressive for the viewers, the only thing that she keep of herself in the show was her ironic grim, and disdain face she usually has.

Nothing out of the ordinary, except the painter, registering the scene. When she noticed that she's just ended the sessions of the day and waited for the people to disperse. After most of the people were gone she raised herself from the throne helped in a very gallantly way by her commander and went to see the painter. Her first reaction was to ask in a polite way who was the person behind the portrait commission because this wasn't commissioned by her or the Inquisition, and the painter didn't have the right to just go there and paint them. The painter just laugh saying that this was a demand from her father who wanted to see just how regal his youngest looked in her hole as Inquisitor. The Commander put his hands on her shoulder and squeezed it in a friendly way, the same way he is used to touch her to easy her frustration on their sparing sections. His touch calmed her enough so she wouldn't do anything inappropriate, but it was plain for everyone to see that the painter was lying and the inquisitor knew it.

One month later , she was back in Skyhold after the terrible time in Emprise du Lion. She was tired , weary, sad. The worst was to come yet, cause telling Cullen about what Sanson was making with the commoners, how a men he knew was experiencing on people, it would be heartbreaking for her. They became close friends since their training in Haven and they have also been through a lot together from deciding to search for time magic to closing the breach, to being rescued by him from death by freezing to establishing themselves in Skyhold. Of course, she felt attracted by him, who wouldn't be, he was a handsome men, but she didn't think they needed the distraction of a relationship now. Specially one that was doomed to be a difficult one, she could help him with his withdraw better as a friend and also her bad dreams, and unluckiness could only make things worst for them. After all he was as unlucky as she was and for much longer, she really thought he was cursed in some kind of fashion, all the disasters that took place in Thedas related to him in some way . Also she didn't like all that angst and the awkwardness. This was never her thing, she never had a relationship that last more than 3 nights together and Cullen wasn't a one night man, this was clear.

She had had a bad feeling about the painter, but nothing could prepare her for the repercussions that the paint had. When she left her dearest prettycurlytail in the stables, Cullen was already waiting for her with a terrible expression on his face, he just said with a stern face that they needed to talk immediately, alone. Who died? Was the first thing that crossed her mind, but he was calm enough for someone important be dead, paying closer attention she noticed he was more angry than desperate, and it was a good sign. They sneak out of Skyhold and start walking in rock terrain near Skyhold walls, in a part that was hard for them to be seen from the Castle doors or from the battlements. She waited , but he didn't say anything, and them they both started a sentence together, she paused and let him speak.

From all the bad things that she could have imagined, this was the most embarrassing one. Some members of her family just arrived in Skyhold, and not for a friendly visit like her brother made in Haven before. They were there to reinforce that her as Herald of Andraste and a symbol of the Faith should behave in the proper way. And that or she married with the Commander and them let him touch her in public audiences or stayed close to her the way he did or that she assumed herself as the " virginal" bride of the maker and acted in the way that she was supposed to. When he told her all of that shit, she couldn't stop laughing hysterically. Her whole life she was the unwanted child that they didn't care to find a proper place, so they left her first in school in Orlais for 2 years in her early teens and later left her with her uncle to take part in the "working" branch of the family. They never cared about propriety from her, as long as she got political and economic leverage for the family, of course her whole life she was discrete, no one never knew what she made or with whom. And the funniest part was that she didn't even enjoyed herself with the Commander and people were already pointing fingers at her.

First the hysterical laugh then the blush and thee shame. How they do that to her? How could she look into Cullen's eyes now and not fell ashamed about what they were forcing on him. He just made a report of the situation, and she just didn't know what to say and how to react. Now she was just ashamed for putting him through such an embarrassing situation, she never thought that the way she choose to show strength was going to put him through this. He was never one to put up with nobles or nobility intrigue, he was a blunt man imagining him putting up with a demanding Lord Trevalyan, and her Orlesian social climbers in laws, just made her sad for burdening him with this shit. She should have guessed that the painter was sent by someone to make her look bad and cause some damage to her image, definitively one of her in laws, probably the Orleasian cousins that married her older brother and sister. Her first question to him was what does the painting looked like, because the sketch that she has seen before the guy was a harmless thing. He's just sighed and said that the painter put his hand on her shoulder while she was sat on the throne.

Aline took a deep breath apologized to him about her family behavior and for her lack of insight. There was nothing else that she could do, except promised that she would take care of all the trouble and force her father to apologize as well. When she was turning back to the castle to face the pain and the humiliation that waited for her, she listened him muttering something and started to turn back asking him if there was anything else she could do to repaired the nuisance that she caused him, she realized the smirk on his face and where he was looking . She just couldn't resist to tease him, and said just how sad she was cause she had got the blame and the fame without the juice parts. He wasn't prepared for the witty comment on her part and for the swaying hips that came on her walk after. He just asked her to stop and got closer to her asking if she really missed not having the "juice" parts he could help her with that, at least this was the only decent thing he could do. When she smiled this was all the consent he needed before kissing her hard, with all that contained desired that they knew they had for each other. When they broke the kiss, they were flustered and breathless, she just disentangled herself from him, gave him a chast kiss on the lips and ask him to wish her luck in her family meeting.


	2. Chapter 2

She's read histories enough to know that nothing ever turns out in a good way. The world is a sad place, people in general will always make the worst choices, and she, as pragmatic as she is, includes herself in this. Of course, she will always take the worst course of action ever. Maybe not the worst, but mostly not the best. Why let her decide? She always thought because they were too much of cowards themselves and wanted to have someone to blame for their choices. Now more than ever she understands why leaders are driven to madness, coldness and sadness, and she is walking this path. She never just get allies she conscript them and make them serve. Making them serve her would be ok, If she was honest enough to make them serve straight and clean, but not her, she is subtle. She make them like her enough to think they are not actually serving, that all was a big mistake and they can leave wherever they want. Just sweet lies, she always just adequate them and eludes them enough that they think about themselves not her servers, but in the end they are. When she judges, it's more about the show then anything, it's not about justice, it's about the spectacle, how amusing everything will be for the watcher and nobles and rulers, not justice at all.

The mages were conscripted cause how in the world she would trust them, she knew that rebellion would be close enough again if she brings them in a short leash. So she masquerade the leash, saying that all happened because she wasn't sure about they loyalty but as soon as they prove themselves, they would be free. She gave them missions and let them taste freedom, let them go around as they pleased, or so they think, but behind all she trains people to be able enough to contain them. She mistrusts and is always vigilant. She knows that people when kept satisfied and with the illusion of freedom, don't rebel. So she gives them this, and smile and treats them like people, but always with the watchful stance. She is doing this for the greater good, or she believes so. She hates chaos, and peace for her means order, organization, things running smoothly. And magic is chaos, is not like chess or a battlefield that she can plan and adequate and control. It's an uncontrollable force and she hates loosing control. That why she is pushes herself farther from everyone, because people you care about you can't control and in the end is about control.

She was the lazy unwanted middle children without anything good enough to turn the tide in her favor. Wits and cleverness alone that is what she had, but this wasn't enough, but know it had to be, or the Maker wouldn't have chosen her. She thinks the Maker is mad, but who is she to question his madness. If in the end all have a purpose, she believed hers was to make evil vanish through cleverness and prove to all that we can vanquish things by the smartness of our actions. So if this is her destiny, so let her make the best of the weapons she had. Even if the price that she is paying is too high, that she forgets who she was and just became Andraste's Herald, and later Inquisitor. The worst is that she knows that she never figured out who she really was. When she is alone she cries, but she doesn't know why. Is it because of the dead, or the misery or the craziness, or the crushing knowledge that their fight is a lost one and things will never be better, or it is just because she was never really truly herself just a mask of duty and emptiness. Now she can't figured out anything anymore, she can just hope that charm and wits will do their magic and the control that she can have maybe work out in such a good way that the world would not be dammed.

She is ruthless, but they think she is sweet and kind and thank her. That is what she hates most, even the elf , the hater, think she is nice enough and this just drive her mad, why can't they see her for what she is. A fabricate thing that make whatever is demanded in a gracious, appropriate way to suit the needs of the moment. She hates herself now more than before. Before she was just the make whatever is necessary Trevalyan girl. Now she is make whatever you think is necessary Inquisitor. Just be the jury and the judge; just decide what is best by your own, cause that is it. After all walking out alone after everyone was dead is a good enough moral thermometer. And almost getting yourself killed, cause a sacrifice would rally more people to the cause is also a good indication of someone mental stability. \Or so they thought.

She was trained to charm to get benefits to her household, and now is even more imperative to win benefits to the Inquisition. So she takes council with the sly snake, with the mage that is more noble than any noble she knows, so let the Game take place. She always hated herself for being such player, even not being the most moral or pious person she knew how wrong the Game was, but as always she will be dutiful and do wherever is the best for the Inquisition. So she trains and hates herself more every passing day cause training makes her better at fighting. Her Commander trains her well enough, and he trains her with passion and lust, IN Skyhold he demands specific instructor so she can get even more lethal, but never ever stop supervising and training her in their free time. That is why she hates herself so much. The time passes and she can't avoid to tease, it is on her flawed nature, to tease and walk and ride and make all her movements seductive and he falls for this.

His eyes never leave her when they are around each other. Even his hands are on her, on a protective way, as a hand in the shoulder when she holds court, or and armed offered to guide her to places. And people whisper, that she is bedding him, but even her know how wrong is to break more an already broken man like him. A good man, a broken one mostly because he was good , too good and she is not good enough to fix him, but she teases, when they train, when they have meetings, when they play chess or just talk. It is not a vulgar tease, it is subtle as is she, but this doesn't excuse her from the guilty of adding more trouble to an already troubled man. That is why she hates so much her wicked nature, that even being mostly used for the greater good, it is still giving a good man a bad time. Because she will never bring him peace, and teasing and being there and also wanting him will not bring him the happiness he need. In addition, she is selfish because she doesn't want him with other, she wants him for herself. But she is not selfish enough to get what she want cause she still have a little bit of kindness to not drag him full into her emptiness.

When her dad arrives demanding a better behavior from her, and she is intercepted by her Commander at the walls and is informed about her dad crazy demands, she just can't resist. And teases him, about why she just get the onus and not the bonus and gives him her most lustful smirk and hips sway, knowing that this would make him ache for her even more. Then the unexpected happens and The Commander just kisses her with such passion that it wakes all the sweetness that she never felt before, and this breaks her more than all before. The person that she always impersonated fells weak and herself wants to take place with all her thoughts and feelings fulfilling her as she didn't remember being fulfilled before. She is lost she touches his face and ask him to wish her luck, and walks like a broken and lost woman for the first time in the walls of her fortress.


End file.
